Naturally Curly Hair Can Be Cared For Many Ways

Image Source: VenusDiva.com

Naturally Curly Hair and it’s care can be difficult at times. There are tons of websites and videos showing us how to care for it.  Many women today have decided to go natural and are either transitioning or have thought about it.  Still there are others, myself included who don’t know how to properly care for our curvy-coily strands.  Recently I decided that I was going to give myself a little break from major heat styling such as flat ironing so I researched on youtube some naturally curly hair style ideas and just like that I learned that there is a whole other community of curly sisters out there teaching each other how to care for their hair.  This to me was almost as inspiring as finding Venus Diva because all the women in the youtube curly community were giving each other tips on how they care for, trim and style their hair.  I still have much to learn but was inspired to share with all of my fellow divas some of the great tips that I have learned and that I am trying.

Read labels. 

Shampoos that contain sulfates and products with silicones prevent your hair from being well moisturized.  Sulfates can be found in laundry detergents and dish washing liquids and strip your hair from its natural oils, causing tangles, split ends and breakage.  If you like your current shampoo, make sure to use a small amount and don’t over use it.  Shampoo should only be applied to the scalp to remove buildup and not your ends.  One great technique I have learned is to pre-shampoo with extra virgin olive oil for an hour or two or as long as you want.  Remember curls need lots of moisture so your hair could always benefit from this.

Pre-shampooing. 

Before washing with shampoo it is great to pre-shampoo your hair.  This involves applying natural oils and deep conditioners on dry dirty hair and letting each hair strand be saturated with butters, creams or oils of your choice.  Remember this is done BEFORE shampooing your hair.

If you wear your hair naturally curly, then you know that you have to wet your hair more often than you might like to get fresh curls, this can be very drying to your hair so co-washing is a great alternative.

Co-washing. 

Since most shampoos contain harmful sulfates which strip your hair from natural oils needed to keep it strong another method to help prevent dryness and breakage is co-washing.  Co-washing is basically washing your hair with conditioner instead of shampoo to keep it moisturized.  You can clarify with a shampoo to remove build-up but it is healthier for your hair to use a shampoo that is sulfate free.  Still you could always pre-shampoo first and that will help keep your natural curls moisturized.

Use a Leave-In Conditioner. 

It doesn’t matter what brand or whether it says leave-in conditioner or not, just as long as you are leaving something in your hair to keep your hair soft and full of moisture…don’t skimp on this.  In addition to conditioners, it is great to use a gel or curling mousse in which after detangling with a wide tooth comb you can apply to your hair while it is soaking wet and scrunch.  Don’t be afraid of shrinkage!  I also learned how to stretch out my curls.

Use a Diffuser. 

I never used a diffuser before because I only would rock my curls in the summer when it was too hot or humid to wear it straight so it would just naturally dry, still I would have shrinkage.  Since taking this major heat break and wearing my curls out in the winter months I had to learn how to keep my hair moisturized and how to use a diffuser on my curls.  A diffuser is a dish shaped attachment usually with fingers that you can attach to your blow-dryer to help dry your curls without frizz, increasing curl definition and volume.  Though this is using heat styling it is nowhere near as bad as using the flatiron as often as I was and I learned to really love my curls with the end result, beautiful, curvy, bouncy, shiny, voluminous exotic hair!

Youtube channel taren916 shows you how to diffuse your curly hair and then after shrinkage how to stretch it for volume and length with the blow dryer.

There are tons of curly sisters out there on youtube and other websites showing you how to properly care for your hair and doing product reviews  so just in case you didn’t already know, you may want to check them out by searching google and youtube.

The above-mentioned pointers are ones that I have tried for myself and have noticed a remarkable difference in my curl pattern and strength, for those of you who want to grow your hair longer like I do, moisturize those ends everyday especially and embrace your natural hair more often.  Hoping this helps, God Bless!

Curvy Confidence Editor, Limarie Lewis -- Daily Venus Diva.

• Website
• Twitter

+ Click for more info about Curvy Confidence Editor, Limarie Lewis

Limarie Lewis is a Philadelphia native recording artist known as Poetikmind with her independent critically acclaimed album titled "Deep Thoughts Defined". She is a wife, stepmother, poet, writer, Sunday school teacher, administrative assistant and aspiring plus model with a BA in Elementary & Special Education. Limarie enjoys working with youth and empowering women of all ages to love themselves for who they are because they are fearfully and wonderfully made. www.modelmayhem.com/poetikmind Where Are You From: I am from all over Philadelphia, from the hood to the suburbs and back.I lived in NY when I was a little girl for about a year but I am a Philly girl. What were you doing before writing for DailyVenusDiva.com: Before writing for DVD, I put out my first spoken word album titled “Deep Thoughts Defined” and had a poetry blog. What do you do for DailyVenusDiva.com: As the Curvy Confidence Editor, I sometimes do product reviews, share stories that help boost self-love and self-awareness and write inspirational poetry What does it mean to Thrive In Your Curves: Thriving in your curves is not allowing anyone to put you in a box because of your size. What is your favorite hobby: I love family so relaxing with my family always feels good to me but as a hobby I love to write and perform poetry as well as practice my model poses in the mirror. Oh I also love making Youtube videos. What is in your future: Only God knows my future What’s so special about DailyVenusDiva.com: This is an everyday site with fresh content for the curvy woman. The editors interact with the readers and every story is relevant to us. We too have a voice and this is just one of the hottest places to use it!